Viewing a completely different sport as a "competing league" is exactly what is earning the Mariners' ownership a ration of shiat from the fans around here (Seattle) for opposing a basketball arena. Competition is actually putting out a competitive product and beating your competitors. In YOUR OWN GAME.

Between this, that, and the fact that the NFL is trying to act like they're a totally legitimate 'competitor' in the field of sports viewership vis-a-vis their lockout of the refs (there is all KINDS of antitrust crap that the NFL is effectively immune to) I'm getting sick of a lot of aspects of 'professional' sports.

You see this idiotic policy, NFL? This absurd policy where your players have to be your marketing shills every second they're in front of the camera? THIS is why Bellichick looks like a goddamn hobo every week.

It wasn't just the long neck that caught your attention. It was his celebration dance after a big play where he could bounce his head back and forth 180 degrees at lightning speed. I'm surprised he never gave himself a concussion.The way he took an unusual attribute and utilized it - it'd be like Peyton Manning showing highlight films on his forehead

Oh no. These guys are paid more money at a base salary for one year then I get paid in 7 and they have to follow a stupid set of rules to do so?

Golly gee I sure pity them.

/excuse me while I go work one of their games just to afford my daughter being able to attend a dance class//not hating them for what they do///hating them for biatching about a stupid rule when these people have it MADE finacially

It wasn't just the long neck that caught your attention. It was his celebration dance after a big play where he could bounce his head back and forth 180 degrees at lightning speed. I'm surprised he never gave himself a concussion.The way he took an unusual attribute and utilized it - it'd be like Peyton Manning showing highlight films on his forehead

It wasn't just the long neck that caught your attention. It was his celebration dance after a big play where he could bounce his head back and forth 180 degrees at lightning speed. I'm surprised he never gave himself a concussion.The way he took an unusual attribute and utilized it - it'd be like Peyton Manning showing highlight films on his forehead

UNC_Samurai:You see this idiotic policy, NFL? This absurd policy where your players have to be your marketing shills every second they're in front of the camera? THIS is why Bellichick looks like a goddamn hobo every week.

So...a fine they issued during the playoffs has been rescinded. And butthurt drama queens show up NOW to piss and moan about fines in the NFL? Because millionaires they never met are losing pocket change?Alrighty then princesses, were you too busy being upset many months ago when the fine was levied to howl about it? Or did some other fleeting shiny drama fasten all your attention and you never even knew there WAS any fine until today? Didja jump straight into your angry dresses as soon as you heard about this outrage so you could tell the NFL how horrible and boring it is and how you can barely watch it until it makes drastic changes?

ESPN's style of angry insane all op-ed all the time sports journalism seems to have taken a life of its own amogst many fans. You guys have even spawned a distinct jargon and mutial talking points. Its somewhere between spooky and fascinating to watch . From that perspective the fireworks and hystrionics and implied ultimatums and tantrums are sort of entertaining. (in a regrettable way, like drinking jaegermeister at the office party) At least y'all arent tryin to run the country via angry isane drastic changes the way politics "fans" who are afflicted with the same trait/phenomenon do. So sorry. Nevermind. Asyou were. Gine em hell with the heartfelt craziness and have fun railing against injustice or whatever you prefer calling this thing you do.

Smith said he was fined for wearing non-NFL-sponsored gear of a competing league[...]his Giants cap to a press conference during last season's playoffs.

I think it is ridiculous to consider baseball a competing league in January. Baseball is a dead league that time of year. Maybe through Week 9 the NFL and MLB are competing for ratings, but once the World Series is over, who gives a fark?

Jim from Saint Paul:/excuse me while I go work one of their games just to afford my daughter being able to attend a dance class//not hating them for what they do///hating them for biatching about a stupid rule when these people have it MADE finacially

Yeah, but you have a pretty good chance at living into your 60s and being both mobile and coherent.

paswa17:I think it is ridiculous to consider baseball a competing league in January. Baseball is a dead league that time of year. Maybe through Week 9 the NFL and MLB are competing for ratings, but once the World Series is over, who gives a fark?

a) realistically, if people are watching an NFL press conference, baseball isn't even in the competition for that audience.b) it's actually about protecting sponsors and getting their products in front of the public and not being able to use your personal branding to subvert the NFL sponsorsc) which is why it was rescinded - though they'd like to cut everything off under the "if you give 'em an inch, they'll take a mile" thought process, probably even the sponsor told 'em "guys, this is just going to make us look bad, let it go"

paswa17:I think it is ridiculous to consider baseball a competing league in January. Baseball is a dead league that time of year. Maybe through Week 9 the NFL and MLB are competing for ratings, but once the World Series is over, who gives a fark?

Baseball junkies can be spotted in January by their 1000 mile stares. To make sure its a baseball fan rather than a soldier with PTSD you can position yourself very close to one. In January baseball fans make a low almost inaudible chant-like noise. You might not even see their lips move if they are a lifetime fan. The noise they make sounds like : pitchers n catchers pitchers n catchers pitchers n catchers pitchers n catchers

mikaloyd:paswa17: I think it is ridiculous to consider baseball a competing league in January. Baseball is a dead league that time of year. Maybe through Week 9 the NFL and MLB are competing for ratings, but once the World Series is over, who gives a fark?

Baseball junkies can be spotted in January by their 1000 mile stares. To make sure its a baseball fan rather than a soldier with PTSD you can position yourself very close to one. In January baseball fans make a low almost inaudible chant-like noise. You might not even see their lips move if they are a lifetime fan. The noise they make sounds like : pitchers n catchers pitchers n catchers pitchers n catchers pitchers n catchers

I could see someone beiing pissed if Smith showed up wearing a Dodgers hat or something, but the SF Giants cap gives off a 'I'm a hometown guy' kinda vibe that you'd think would strengthen the connection between the player and the fanbase.

mikaloyd:So...a fine they issued during the playoffs has been rescinded. And butthurt drama queens show up NOW to piss and moan about fines in the NFL? Because millionaires they never met are losing pocket change?Alrighty then princesses, were you too busy being upset many months ago when the fine was levied to howl about it? Or did some other fleeting shiny drama fasten all your attention and you never even knew there WAS any fine until today? Didja jump straight into your angry dresses as soon as you heard about this outrage so you could tell the NFL how horrible and boring it is and how you can barely watch it until it makes drastic changes?

ESPN's style of angry insane all op-ed all the time sports journalism seems to have taken a life of its own amogst many fans. You guys have even spawned a distinct jargon and mutial talking points. Its somewhere between spooky and fascinating to watch . From that perspective the fireworks and hystrionics and implied ultimatums and tantrums are sort of entertaining. (in a regrettable way, like drinking jaegermeister at the office party) At least y'all arent tryin to run the country via angry isane drastic changes the way politics "fans" who are afflicted with the same trait/phenomenon do. So sorry. Nevermind. Asyou were. Gine em hell with the heartfelt craziness and have fun railing against injustice or whatever you prefer calling this thing you do.

Jubeebee:Jim from Saint Paul: /excuse me while I go work one of their games just to afford my daughter being able to attend a dance class//not hating them for what they do///hating them for biatching about a stupid rule when these people have it MADE finacially

Yeah, but you have a pretty good chance at living into your 60s and being both mobile and coherent.

mikaloyd:paswa17: I think it is ridiculous to consider baseball a competing league in January. Baseball is a dead league that time of year. Maybe through Week 9 the NFL and MLB are competing for ratings, but once the World Series is over, who gives a fark?

Baseball junkies can be spotted in January by their 1000 mile stares. To make sure its a baseball fan rather than a soldier with PTSD you can position yourself very close to one. In January baseball fans make a low almost inaudible chant-like noise. You might not even see their lips move if they are a lifetime fan. The noise they make sounds like : pitchers n catchers pitchers n catchers pitchers n catchers pitchers n catchers

HAHA, I resemble that remark. I start the countdown the day after the Super Bowl, though. February is the worst sports month ever, post-SB.

Jim from Saint Paul:Jubeebee: Jim from Saint Paul: /excuse me while I go work one of their games just to afford my daughter being able to attend a dance class//not hating them for what they do///hating them for biatching about a stupid rule when these people have it MADE finacially

Yeah, but you have a pretty good chance at living into your 60s and being both mobile and coherent.

Well I am fat.... so 1 one out of 2 aint bad.

I was always told that being on fark proved incoherence. Was I misinformed?

I like the idea of everyone wearing a SF Giants hat to the next game. Funny thing, the San Francisco Giants AND the San Francisco 49ers are both on top of their respective leagues. It feels good living in the San Francisco Bay Area right now.

PacificaFitz:I like the idea of everyone wearing a SF Giants hat to the next game. Funny thing, the San Francisco Giants AND the San Francisco 49ers are both on top of their respective leagues. It feels good living in the San Francisco Bay Area right now.

A's are sitting pretty for a wild card spot too.Too bad about the Raiders.

skrame:Jim from Saint Paul: Jubeebee: Jim from Saint Paul: /excuse me while I go work one of their games just to afford my daughter being able to attend a dance class//not hating them for what they do///hating them for biatching about a stupid rule when these people have it MADE finacially

Yeah, but you have a pretty good chance at living into your 60s and being both mobile and coherent.

Well I am fat.... so 1 one out of 2 aint bad.

I was always told that being on fark proved incoherence. Was I misinformed?

mikaloyd:So...a fine they issued during the playoffs has been rescinded. And butthurt drama queens show up NOW to piss and moan about fines in the NFL? Because millionaires they never met are losing pocket change?Alrighty then princesses, were you too busy being upset many months ago when the fine was levied to howl about it? Or did some other fleeting shiny drama fasten all your attention and you never even knew there WAS any fine until today? Didja jump straight into your angry dresses as soon as you heard about this outrage so you could tell the NFL how horrible and boring it is and how you can barely watch it until it makes drastic changes?

ESPN's style of angry insane all op-ed all the time sports journalism seems to have taken a life of its own amogst many fans. You guys have even spawned a distinct jargon and mutial talking points. Its somewhere between spooky and fascinating to watch . From that perspective the fireworks and hystrionics and implied ultimatums and tantrums are sort of entertaining. (in a regrettable way, like drinking jaegermeister at the office party) At least y'all arent tryin to run the country via angry isane drastic changes the way politics "fans" who are afflicted with the same trait/phenomenon do. So sorry. Nevermind. Asyou were. Gine em hell with the heartfelt craziness and have fun railing against injustice or whatever you prefer calling this thing you do.

For someone who is annoyed with pissing and moaning, you sure do a lot of it.

The rule itself is rather short-sighted in that it doesn't have an "out" for this sort of situation. Seeing a player for one team of your city supporting another team helps build rapport between the player and the city and that's great for everyone involved. It's the sort of thing that took mediocre-to-poor players like Darren McCarty and Brandon Inge and made them huge fan favorites on teams featuring multiple Hall of Famers.

MyNameIsMofuga:Nana's Vibrator: MyNameIsMofuga: Merton Hanks. That guy had a long neck.

It wasn't just the long neck that caught your attention. It was his celebration dance after a big play where he could bounce his head back and forth 180 degrees at lightning speed. I'm surprised he never gave himself a concussion.The way he took an unusual attribute and utilized it - it'd be like Peyton Manning showing highlight films on his forehead

Dafodude:Viewing a completely different sport as a "competing league" is exactly what is earning the Mariners' ownership a ration of shiat from the fans around here (Seattle) for opposing a basketball arena. Competition is actually putting out a competitive product and beating your competitors. In YOUR OWN GAME.

Between this, that, and the fact that the NFL is trying to act like they're a totally legitimate 'competitor' in the field of sports viewership vis-a-vis their lockout of the refs (there is all KINDS of antitrust crap that the NFL is effectively immune to) I'm getting sick of a lot of aspects of 'professional' sports.

They're all in the same game: entertainment. And local entertainment dollars are not infinite.

mikaloyd:So...a fine they issued during the playoffs has been rescinded. And butthurt drama queens show up NOW to piss and moan about fines in the NFL? Because millionaires they never met are losing pocket change?Alrighty then princesses, were you too busy being upset many months ago when the fine was levied to howl about it? Or did some other fleeting shiny drama fasten all your attention and you never even knew there WAS any fine until today? Didja jump straight into your angry dresses as soon as you heard about this outrage so you could tell the NFL how horrible and boring it is and how you can barely watch it until it makes drastic changes?

ESPN's style of angry insane all op-ed all the time sports journalism seems to have taken a life of its own amogst many fans. You guys have even spawned a distinct jargon and mutial talking points. Its somewhere between spooky and fascinating to watch . From that perspective the fireworks and hystrionics and implied ultimatums and tantrums are sort of entertaining. (in a regrettable way, like drinking jaegermeister at the office party) At least y'all arent tryin to run the country via angry isane drastic changes the way politics "fans" who are afflicted with the same trait/phenomenon do. So sorry. Nevermind. Asyou were. Gine em hell with the heartfelt craziness and have fun railing against injustice or whatever you prefer calling this thing you do.

Jim from Saint Paul:skrame: Jim from Saint Paul: Jubeebee: Jim from Saint Paul: /excuse me while I go work one of their games just to afford my daughter being able to attend a dance class//not hating them for what they do///hating them for biatching about a stupid rule when these people have it MADE finacially

Yeah, but you have a pretty good chance at living into your 60s and being both mobile and coherent.

Well I am fat.... so 1 one out of 2 aint bad.

I was always told that being on fark proved incoherence. Was I misinformed?

roc6783:HAHA, I resemble that remark. I start the countdown the day after the Super Bowl, though. February is the worst sports month ever, post-SB.

I farking hate February. If I watched puck and hoops I might not, and I've been trying to come around on hockey, and I only watch the Suns when they're in the finals (coming up on 20 years since I last cared!). I try to save a long video game for that month, like Final Fantasy or a long TV series to burn time.